Part 2
"Alright, campers!" Phineas announced as soon as they got to the campground. "Let's have some camping fun!" The kids cheered. "We'll go on a hike, but first, Isabella and I will pitch the tent." The kids then groaned. "Don't worry, it won't take long. I promise."
"Dad, why didn't we buy the self-pitching tent?" Leo asked.
"Because, son," Phineas told him. "You know how your mother is. Luckily, we have this big tent so everybody can fit."
"Yes, but, it'll make things go faster. It's so simple."
"Son, your mother was a Fireside Girl. She went camping before. She's got this."
"I know, Dad, but…"
"Remember, son, slow and steady…" Leo sighed.
"Wins the race." Phineas tapped his son on the nose.
"Bingo."
"Phineas, dear!" Isabella called to him. "If you don't mind stopping your chat with our son, I'd really like a hand, please."
"Coming, sweetie!" Phineas took off to help his wife with the tent.
"You know," Francisca began, coming up to Leo when his back was against a tree minutes later, as he was about to put the VR he secretly packed away, on. She startled him as well. "We rely on technology so much compared to people that came before us, that our minds say we'll die without our phones and the Internet."
"That's true. We will die without them." Francisca arched an eyebrow.
"Really?" Leo sighed.
"No."
"That's right. You know my mother was so fed up with my kid sister and I being on our devices all the time, that she took them all away for a week, and if we were caught, we'd be grounded." Leo looked at her in disbelief.
"Really?"
"Yes, really."
"Man, that's not right. Parents shouldn't take away what we love. They're part of us, whether they like it or not. I'm sorry, but that must have been torture."
"Not really. I was mad at first, but as the days came and went, I learned how to live without them. And now, I'm rarely on a device, believe it or not."
"What about your sister?"
"Our mom still needs to work with her on it. Hopefully, she'll succeed." Hopefully, she won't. Leo was about to say but didn't dare.
"I know you're secretly hoping she won't." Leo was shocked. How did she know? Francisca laughed. "You'll see one day, you too will hate technology, and think they're making people nothing but lazy." Leo felt offended. No I won't. "Yes, you will."
"Okay, are you a fortune teller? Because, you're creeping me out." She laughed again.
"No, I'm not a fortune teller. I just know things." She smiled. "And don't worry. Your secret's safe with me. I don't want to see you in trouble, so, I won't rat you out." This time, Leo smiled. He was then confused. What secret? He was about to ask, when he realized that she was talking about the VR. Man, she's good! He smiled again.
"Thanks. I really appreciate it."
Captain found a shady spot under a tree to rest. He laid down, and was about to sleep when he heard a cry for help. The capybara sprang to his feet, and was determined. He wanted to relax on this trip, but when an animal or a human is in danger, he always makes an exception. The furry animal headed towards the cry. He ran and ran as the cry became louder and louder.
Phineas came to get Captain for their hike.
"Okay, boy." He said. "Are you ready for your walk?" He saw that Captain was gone. He looked, and looked for the capybara, but couldn't find him anywhere. He decided to ask his wife.
"Sorry, no I haven't." Isabella said when Phineas asked her.
"Well, looks like he went off to wherever he goes off to. He reminds me of Perry." Isabella smiled.
"That he does." She frowned. "But, it's still worrisome. He could be anywhere. This park is big. He could be dead or lost."
"He could. But, since he's like Perry, he'll come back safe and sound. I wouldn't worry about it, and let's not worry the kids either.'
"Well, if you're sure."
"Sure I'm sure. The kids are used to it. They'll understand." Isabella was still unsure, but trusted her husband.
Captain ran to a nearby cliff slide.
"Hello?!" He called. "I'm here to help; where are you?"
"I'm down here!" A little voice shouted. The capybara looked at the edge of the cliff, and gasped at what he saw. A little fox kit was on the landing above the raging river below. A fox then shot out of the bushes, and gasped in horror as she saw her baby below. "Mama!"
"Kit! Don't worry, Mommy's here. Mommy will get you back to safety." Captain looked at her as she tried to figure out want to do.
"Don't worry about your son." He assured her. "I'm here to help." The fox looked at him.
"And you are?"
"I'm Super Capybara. I help animals and humans in need."
"And I'm Vixie, Kit's mother. Do you expect me to just trust you to save my baby?"
"Yes. Yes, you do, because if you don't trust me, who are you going to trust?"
"Nobody. Look, out here, no one can put their trust in anyone."
"Your son trusts you, and you trust your son, don't you?"
"That's different."
"How? Because of love, right?" She was about to respond when a piecing cry interrupted.
"MAMA!" Kit called. "HELP ME!" Kit's mom sighed.
"How are you going to help?" She asked. The capybara smiled.
"Just watch me." And with that, the capybara ran to the cliff at full force, and jumped down. The adult fox sighed to herself.
Idiot. Jumped off a cliff to his death. Shows me right for trusting him. She ran to the cliff, and looked down. She couldn't believe it. Captain landed on the landing by her frightened son perfectly. Wow! She thought to herself. The capybara has some mad jumping skills. I'm impressed. Who knew? I guess I spoke my thought too soon.
"Don't worry, Kit." Captain assured him. "I'll make sure you get safely back up with your mom. Now, get on my back." Kit looked at him like he was crazy.
"What are you going to do?" He looked at up and down the cliff, then back at Captain. "You're going to climb back up this cliff? That's insane! It's insane in the membrane. You're insane, Mister."
"Just watch, kid. Now, come on, onto my back." The kit wasn't sure. "It'll be fine. If you hang on, you won't fall."
"My left paw's broken." Captain winced at the injured paw. "We'll worry about that later. Now, climb aboard. " Kit still was unsure, but climbed onto the capybara's back.
"Hang on." The capybara scaled the cliff with his claws.
When they were all the way up, Captain collapsed in exhaustion. Kit ran to his mom, and the two foxes cuddled. The capybara caught his breath, and collapsed. He then stood up. "Careful." He warned her. "His paw's broken." Kit's mom looked at Captain.
"I can't thank you enough." She thanked him. "You really saved my son."
"Yeah." Kit agreed. "Thanks, Mister." Captain smiled.
"Don't mention it. Just doing my job." Captain looked at Kit's paw, and as if on cue, the kit winced in pain. "But, Kit is really hurting. I know some great humans called vets that'll take good care of him. Now, come on." He was about to go off when the adult fox interrupted.
"Whoa! I'm sorry, but trusting you is one thing, trusting humans is another." Captain was confused.
"How so?"
"We foxes just don't do it." But when she saw her son in pain again, she gave in. "Fine, anything for my son. Let's just hurry." Captain smiled again.
"Perfect. It's this way. Follow me." She took her son in her mouth, and bounded off after the capybara.
Phineas and his family were shocked as they came across Candace and her family while they were hiking. Ally and Leo ran excitedly to hug their aunt, uncle, and cousins.
"Well, this is a surprise." Phineas observed.
"It is indeed." Jeremy agreed. "Who ever thought we picked the same weekend to go camping, the same park, and meet up at this spot doing the same hike?"
"Life works in mysterious ways like that."
"That they do, Phineas. That they do."
"How's our stepbrother doing?" Candace asked her brother. "I hear he let you live with him and his family while you were in London on your business trip." Phineas was about to talk, when Ally interrupted.
"Dad, why don't we talk, and go on our hike at the same time? We haven't seen them since New Year's." Phineas smiled at her.
"I think that's a great idea, honey." He looked at his sister. "Is that okay, Candace?"
"If it's okay with everyone else, it's fine with me." Everyone agreed. "Then, it's unanimous I guess we all go with you." So, they all walked together.
"Here's the place." Captain said when he and the two foxes were in front of a veterinary clinic. "The humans here are animal doctors. These people will nurse your son back to health. They're experts at it."
"And you know this how?" Kit's mom wanted to know.
"Because one of the vets here, Eddie Little, is my vet when I come here with my family." Kit's mom was surprised.
"You belong to humans?" Captain nodded.
"Yes, yes I do. They take care of me like Eddie and the others, so if you can trust me, you can trust them too." Vixie thought about this.
"I just don't know about this."
"Please, Mama!" Kit pleaded. "You won't know if you trust them unless you try."
"And if I trust them, how do I know they won't kill you? You don't know, Kit. You just don't know."
"I'll paw the door to get their attention." Captain said.
"Wait, no!" The capybara walked towards the door, and pawed at it. But nobody came. "Ha! See, nobody! I told you that you can't trust humans."
"You have to have patience. They're very busy right now. They must not have heard the door."
Seconds later, the door opened, and there stood a female vet. The vet looked at the capybara.
"Oh." She said. "I see we have a visitor. Do you need food? Water? Milk?" Captain stood by the injured kit. The vet looked at the young fox, and gasped. "Oh, you poor thing." She picked him up. Vixie tensed up, but when she saw Captain glare at her, shaking his head, eased up. "We'll heal you right up." The vet looked at Vixie."Oh, are you the mom? Don't worry. When he's better, I'll return him to you. You just stay where I can see you." She went back inside, closing the door behind her. Vixie was still uncertain about all of this. Captain noticed this.
"I know you're scared." He began. "But, they know what they're doing. You just have to give them a chance." Vixie looked like she might cry.
"But, what if I can't? What if they kill him?"
"They won't." Vixie turned to him, mad now.
"They better not! If anything bad happens to him, I will never trust you or anyone ever again." Captain smiled.
"You have to trust someone sooner or later, Vixie."
"No, I don't."
"Fine, you don't, but, Kit will be better. Just give it time, and they're come when he's ready. You just be ready, and be where the vet can see you when he's returned to you. In the meantime, I'm going back to my family's campsite." He was about to go when Vixie stopped him.
"Thank you. Without you, my son would've died on that cliff, or fall in, and drowned in the river." Captain smiled.
"I hope your son gets better."
"I hope so too…for your sake."
"He will. You'll see." He then walked off back to his family's campsite. Vixie was still unsure, but chose to trust them. She felt like she had nothing to lose, and no other choice at this point. She really hoped beyond hope that the capybara was right, and that the humans were 100% trustworthy.
"Look, kids," Phineas said as they saw people zip- lining above them. "They have zip-lining here. Man, the last time I zip- lined was when I was a kid." He looked at them. "Hey, I have a fun idea. How about we follow where it goes, and go zip- lining?"
"Yeah!" The kids cheered. They all ran, following the wires above.
They all marveled as soon as they got there, and watched as some zip- liners took off. Everyone was impressed. Everyone except Leo. He didn't get it. Why would people risk their lives zipping on wires, feet above the ground? If their harness breaks, they could fall and get hurt…or worse. He thought it was stupid, and would never do it.
"I always wanted to zip- line." Francisca stated. "But, I always chicken out. It looks scary and exciting at the same time. I wish I could get over my fear, and just do it. You know, get out of my comfort zone." Leo thought about this. He then looked at her.
"Do you want to zip- line with me?" She looked at him. "Maybe if you zip- line with me, you'll be less scared, or not at all."
"You'd do that for me? Are you sure?" Leo nodded. Francisca beamed. "Thank you!" And with that, she ran to the end of the line. Leo then noticed Ally giving him a knowing grin.
"What?"
"I knew you had a crush on her. You're afraid of heights." Leo realized she was right. Why did he say that? He'll die for sure. He was about to call out to Francisca when she called to him.
"Come on, Leo!" She called. "Are you coming or not?"
"Looks like you're going, or are you going to chicken out, and disappoint your girlfriend?" Leo narrowed his eyes, and scowled as his sister ran off to the line. He then felt his father's hand on his shoulder. He looked at his father
"I'm proud that you are putting her before you, son. But, don't overdo it. Don't feel like you have to if you really don't want to I'm sure she'll understand." And with that, he went off. Leo went off too.
Leo wanted to back off, and tell Francisca about his phobia, but couldn't bring himself to do it. Not even when they were the next ones in line, and had their helmets and harnesses on.
"Ooh, we're next in line!" Francisca uttered. "I'm so excited! Are you excited, Leo?"
"Uh, sure." He lied. He was still so unsure about this.
"You kids' turn." A man told them. Leo looked up at him as he ushered him to the edge. This was it. Time to back out, but he found himself walking to the edge.
"I'm ready." He said.
"We're about to go!" Francisca cried out, excitedly, and squealed. "Sorry, but I'm just so excited. I can't believe I'm about to do this!"
"Yeah, me neither." Leo admitted. After a countdown, the two sped off. Leo screamed, but Francisca thought it was in joy. She squealed as well.
"I NEVER FELT SO ALIVE!"
Captain looked up as the two kids zipped above him. He watched as they went, not believing it. Was that Leo? Doesn't he have a fear of heights? He decided to meet them at the landing point, and continued walking. Phineas and Isabella were behind them.
"Hey!" Phineas pointed out the family pet. "I think I see Captain!"
"Maybe he's going to wait for us at the end!" Isabella suggested. "You know, like Perry would."
"Yeah, maybe, let's go see!"
"That was the best thing ever!" Francisca cried after they got down from the landing platform. "I'm so glad I tried it. Wait until I tell my parents. You had a blast, right, Leo?"
"Yeah, totally!" He agreed. He was glad he tried it as well. He still was terrified of heights, but he had to admit, he had fun, especially with a girl like Francisca. Francisca was cool. He then saw Captain when they were down the stairs.
"Oh, hey, Captain." Captain made his noise. So, it was Leo! And he must have done this because of Francisca. Of course, it all made sense now.
"Oh, there you are, Captain." Phineas said when he and Isabella were down. "I knew you would be here. See, Isabella? Takes after Perry. We had nothing to worry about."
"I guess not." Isabella agreed. "But, we can't just assume things. Anything could happen at any time."
"I guess, but we didn't have to worry this time."
"Dad!" Ally cried. "Did you see Leo? He did the zip- line, despite his fear of heights!"
"I sure did!" Phineas told her. "And I'm proud of him. You should too." Francisca frowned. She looked at Leo.
"You're scared of heights? You should've told me. I would've understood. If I've known, I would've never asked you to do this with me." Leo smiled.
"Don't worry about it. I'm glad to have done this…with you. I wouldn't have done it without you, so thanks." Francisca smiled. "But, don't think I'm not afraid of heights anymore. I still am." Francisca giggled.
"Duly noted."
"Okay." Phineas spoke. "Now that we all had our fun, let's get back to camp." Everyone agreed, and was off, including Captain.
When they neared their campsite, they all saw a trailer park. Leo stopped to look. Isabella tsked in disapproval.
"Some people don't get the wonders of traditional camping."
"Now, now." Phineas said to is wife. "It's not our place to judge. It's their own business on how they want to do things."
"I guess." They left with the others. Leo stayed behind. This confused Francisca.
"Just a minute." Leo said to her. He went closer. A boy came out. He saw Leo looking at the vehicle.
"That's my parents." He told him. "We just got here. If you want I could show you the inside. We have a plasma TV." Leo was impressed.
"You do?" The boy nodded.
"With thousands of my video games, and our movies. I'm only exaggerating of course. I don't have thousands, but there is a lot, maybe almost 50 or 100."
"That's cool. We only have a tent. We weren't allowed to bring electronics. I had to sneak in my VR system."
"Oh, that's too bad. Luckily, my parents are cool. They're not stuck a hundred years in the past."
"You're lucky." The boy smiled.
"Yeah, yeah I am."
"I'm Ethan, btw."
"Hey Ethan, I'm Leo."
"So, do you want to see my parent's trailer?" Leo was so excited, that he forgot about camping. He smiled.
"Sure," He was about to go when Francisca cleared her throat. He frowned. "Sorry, I have to go. I'm camping with my family and friends."
"Are you sure?"
"I'm sure."
"Okay, but if you change your mind, and with your parents' permission, I will be here for the whole weekend."
"Thanks. Me too. But, I don't think they'll give me permission." This time, Ethan frowned.
"Oh, I see. You have those parents."
"Yeah, those parents." Francisca cleared her throat again, impatient.
"Any day, now!" She said.
"Well, I'll see what I can do." Leo said again.
"Okay." Ethan said. They said goodbye to each other, and Leo went back to the campsite with Francisca.
Captain's watch beeped again. He sighed. More danger? What was it this time? He just got back, and now he had to leave again. This is what his job was all about. He had to suck it up, and not complain. He now knew what Perry and Pinky felt like when they had to leave their families. But, danger always comes out of the blue. He had to go, if not, who? And with that, he took off.
For the rest of the day, the kids and their parents all went horseback riding, archery, and outdoor games. The kids played some more while the parents made a fire. They ate hot dogs, and cooked S'Mores. They then told ghost stories.
"You did not meet your uncle and Dad when they were your ages." Ally said. "Get out! Time travel isn't possible…at least not yet anyways."
"Well, they did. And if it weren't for them, my brother and I will still be sitting under that digital tree. Man, that was a good tree to sit under…and it still is."
"And I sat besides him." Fred pied up. "And I agree, it was a good tree to sit under…and still is too."
"Believe what you want."
"Okay, kids." Phineas announced. "Bedtime. Come to the tent." The kids all groaned.
"Say goodbye to your cousins." Candice told her children. Fred and his brother groaned.
"Do we have to?" Fred's brother asked. "We're having such a fun time."
"You know we have to."
"You all can hang out again tomorrow." Jeremy put in. The kids all thought this was a good idea, and cheered. They all said their goodbyes, and left.
Leo wasn't tired, so he decided to play on his VR system. He took it out of his pack, and walked out of the tent, so he won't wake up his sister while playing. He strolled to a nearby tree, and sat down. He looked all around to see if anybody was looking. He was about to start it up when a voice startled him.
"You couldn't get to sleep either, huh?" Leo looked, and saw that it was Francisca.
"Me either."
"Francisca, you scared me." Leo said. "Don't do that."
"Sorry." She apologized.
"It's alright as long as you don't do that when I'm playing." He was about to start it up again when she spoke up again.
"Can I play?" He looked at her.
"You want to play with me?" She nodded.
"It may have been a while, but I think I can do it."
"Sorry, I only brought one controller." Francisca frowned.
"Oh." She then gave out a mischievous grin. "Are you just saying that because you know I'll beat you, and don't want to lose?"
"No. I'm saying that because I just brought one controller." She frowned again.
"Oh." They then saw a firefly. Francisca's face lit up.
"Ooh; it's a firefly; I love fireflies!" Leo looked confused.
"You do?" Francisca nodded.
"On nights like these, I like laying down in the grass, looking up in the sky, and just watch them."
"You do?" Again, Francisca nodded. "Isn't that boring?"
"Not to me it's not." More fireflies flew by. "Well, bye for now!" She followed them.
"Bye." He booted up the system. As he was doing that, he was thinking long and hard about something. He decided against it, and started his file. He was about to make his avatar move when he thought of the same thought. He sighed. He couldn't believe he was about to do this. He paused his game, and stood up. A minute. He told himself. A minute, then it's back to my game. He went off to where Francisca headed off to.
"May I lay down beside you?" He asked when he found her laying in the grass with her hands behind her hand, like a cushion. Francisca looked at him, and smiled.
"I thought you were more interested in your game."
"Yeah, well, this'll just be for a minute." She ushered him a spot next to her, and he laid down, putting his hands behind his head as well. He looked at the sky, and to his surprise, enjoyed it.
"Wow!" He marveled. "The fireflies sure are beautiful."
"I know, right? It's amazing what you see if you just take the time to look around you and observe."
"Yeah, no kidding."
Some time went by, and they were still looking at the sky, watching the fireflies. As they did this, they laughed and chatted about their likes and dislikes, and about their lives, getting to know each other better. Leo was having so much fun that he forgot
his game was still on. A little time later, the two kids fell asleep, snuggling up to each other.
The next morning, both of the kids awoke when they heard their names being called. Francisca noticed that Leo was still sleeping, and nudged him.
"Leo, wake up." She said. Leo opened his eyes. "They're calling for us"
"Dad!" Ally called, when she saw them. "They're right here! And you won't believe what Leo brought along, well you will, but you won't like it!" She gave her brother a sly grin. "You are so busted!"
"Hate to tell you this, kid." Amanda, who stood next to her, informed her. "You might fail at busting them. I've tried, and my mom tried several times when she was my age at your dad and Uncle Ferb at my age, but we both had failed miserably."
"Please, don't tell, sis." Leo begged. "I'd do anything."
"Anything?"
"Yeah, anything. I'll do your online homework for you."
"Uh, it's summer."
"I mean, I'll do it when school starts. I'll do it until the new year, or all school year if you want me too."
"That's a nice offer, but I don't want you to give me a bad grade, so I better do it." Leo sighed in relief.
"Oh, good. I hate doing my own homework, so why would I do yours? So, what would you like me to do?"
"Nothing." Leo was shocked.
"Really?"
"Yeah, really. I won't bust you. Your secret's safe with me." Amanda was shocked about this.
"What?!" She wanted to know. "You have to bust. Why won't you bust?" Leo smiled.
"Oh, thank you. Ally. You're the best! You don't know what this means to me."
"But…"Ally started. Leo was now worried.
"Uh-oh. Not a 'but'." He sighed. "I knew this was too good to be true. But, what do I have to do?"
"You have to stop playing video games for the rest of this trip, and spend time with your GF." Leo smiled.
"Deal. My battery died anyway. I was going to recharge it once we get to the tent, and play it again, only I won't." He took Francisca's hand. "I have something more important to do then VR." Francisca awed at this, and her face turned red.
"Stop." She said. "You're making me blush." Ally beamed, squealed, and jumped up and down, excitedly.
"You two are so adorbs, together! I'm happy for the both of you. Are you two going to kiss?" Leo was disgusted by this.
"Ew, Ally, don't be gross." Then, he whispered to Ally so Francisca wouldn't hear.
"Maybe later in the future, you know, depending on how things go." Ally was confused.
"What are you whispering about?" She asked.
"Nothing!" Leo lied out loud. He whispered again. "See what you made me do? You made me lie to my GF."
"No, I didn't. You did it upon yourself, bro."
"What are you two keep whispering about?"
"Noth…ugh! Don't worry about it, Francisca! Sorry, don't worry about it." They held hands and headed off. Francisca was puzzled.
"What's GF? I haven't been in America long, so I'm not used to American terms yet. Is GF 'great friend'? Because, you are my GF too." Leo blushed this time
"Uh, kind of. I'll tell you later."
"Okay, GF."
"Actually, I'll tell you while we walk."
"Okay, GF. Whatever you say." Leo sighed.
"After I tell you, you might feel stupid, but here's goes." Ally sighed heavenly as she watched his brother go off with his GF. Amanda did too.
"Aw, young love." She marveled. "Which reminds me, I have to call Cory…but not until I get home…because this trip is all about being in the great outdoors and stuff. Don't worry; they'll kiss eventually. One step at a time."
"I know." Ally agreed. And with that, the two followed them.
Captain was there when they came back with the rest of the families. Yesterday was super busy for him. He was saving animals from left to right. He was ready for a nice long day to relax, and be with the ones he loved, his family. Suddenly, his watch beeped. He sighed. Why was the universe doing this to him?! Doesn't it know he just wanted to relax, and be a normal pet sometimes? The capybara took off.
Leo was faithful to his promise. He didn't play his VR for the rest of the trip, go back to Ethan's, and never told his parents about Ethan and the VR. He also didn't play a lot when they got back, which surprised his parents, but also made them proud. Leo just went out with Francisca on 'dates', and hung out with his friends. Leo knew what Ally and Amanda knew. He would kiss her, and he wanted so badly too. But, he also didn't want to jeopardize it. He wanted it to be perfect when the time came. He just needed to wait to see what the future will hold for the both of them.